New Rig - GK NEO and 1001RB-11 review

Here's a mini review...(I've only owned it a week so I might do a follow up later)
I still have my acme B4 and my line 6 bass pod. So my ears are still refrencing from that.

-NEO 212 and 1001RB-11-
My drummer said it best: 'It sounds more versitile and more of a pop sound'.

The low end on my new rig sounds more round and full while the mid range is somewhere between smooth and punchy. The highs can be cut or brought up on the head without getting brittle and harsh. This rig is loud!!! I was running 1100 watts into a b4 and it wasn't even close to this rig. I can't get the speaker to clip. I was thinking before I got the NEO212 that I would get a NEO 15 but I don't think I need more low end. I really want to try this rig on a few gigs before I'm official on how I like the sound. I do like it for now.

-1001RB-11-
A little EQing goes a long way on this head. I've been running it with the bass and low mids cut a little and some prescence added. Everything else is at 12. I really like the effects loop and DI on the front. The DI has it's own seperate volume control and is only effected by the input pad, it's volume control, and the input volume control. I can't stand having a DI being effected by how I control my stage volume so that was a big factor in my purchase. The woofer and tweeter controls are very user friendly. I think it is well constructed. It never seems to run hot and is only 18lbs. It's also only 8" deep so I'm going to get a shallow rack for it.

-NEO 212-
I'm digging the toilex(spelling?) but I wish they offered a flight case version. I want to get a cover for it though. Oh here's a question... Anybody ever bought a GK cover? are they any good? do they have padding? back to the review... The grill seems to protect the speakers very well but it sticks out a little, almost like it's a little big. I like the wheels and the spring loaded handles are nice. I of course ran it in biamp mode. All in all it seems to be well constructed. I won't notice this too much until I take it on gigs and have to move it around.

Fred312bProof that gear doesn't make you a better playerSupporting Member

purty... i'm hearing lots of good things about these gk neos... maybe i'll have to look into them- is the speaker grille chrome or is it just grey/silver? ... anyways, i was just posting to say a)nice rig and b)i've bought a gk cover for my 1001rb/210 combo and it was not padded, but it fit nicely and keeps the dust off

purty... i'm hearing lots of good things about these gk neos... maybe i'll have to look into them- is the speaker grille chrome or is it just grey/silver? ... anyways, i was just posting to say a)nice rig and b)i've bought a gk cover for my 1001rb/210 combo and it was not padded, but it fit nicely and keeps the dust off

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If it's just a dust cover I'll just use the case I made for my acme. The acme measures 23x26.5x16.5 and the gk measures 20.8x25.8x16 so it will fit, maybe with just a little too much room.

Thats a good idea and would really protect it, you could pad the gaps with foam to protect it even more.

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After the summer's over I'll build a case for it. My acme case right now is the pull off top type. I want to have the GK case to have front and rear removable lids so it will always protected and always on wheels.

Fred312b - The grill looks more chrome than grey to me... but I'm at work right now... so I'm actually not posting this.

after years of using hi powered amps and dedicated hi-end preamps, and top of the line, astronomically priced cabs, i have returned to GK
I use the same rig, got a second neo 212 that I have not needed to add yet, and also got probably the first Neo212/GK1001rbII combo shipped by GK- can you tell I really love this combination? the reason for 2 amps is i need to have separate rigs set up at different gigs sometimes to eliminate setup time.
So far, i get all the tone i need from my GK 1001- pleanty of power and headroo and the amp just sounds killer, I do not miss my fancy amp rig at all, and it is a breeze to carry, with the GK bag, granted they are not padded, but they help maintain the gear anyway.
For price, size, weight and tone, this has been teh best i can find. My F bass , Norstrand and Sadowsky all sound killer thru it and almost every bassist that sits in or hears it first hand wants to know what it is and how to get one-!

Awesome Stuff... I'm actually on my second GK head in about 6 months- not because of problems, but becasue I wanted something more powerful & little more old school. So I sold my 400RB III for an 800RB both are great, very different but great!

Enjoy the head, and the cab... I'd love to hear a 212neo, unfortunatly not alot of places in Australia stock GK cabinets- dispite the loads of heads. Looks like a powerful rig though- one that will last years.

Nice to hear the Neo 212 cab covers the low end well. I have a Neo 112 and have been very surprised how well it does on its own with the GK1001-II head. Sounds like others have had similiar success using GK gear after toting around pricier "high end" amplification. I leave my Bergantinos home whenever the size of the venue justifies the use of the much smaller/lighter Neo cabinet. Cheers.

Here is another short review after I did a rehersal, an outdoor gig, and an indoor gig with my rig. You dig?

I really love the DI. It's very userfriendly if your band has a PA. I felt free to turn up my stage sound durring the outdoor gig without effecting the DI. For the indoor gig I turned my stage volume down a little and rolled off some of the bass and I pushed the post eq button so my soundman wasn't effected by my eq change.

After both gigs I picked up my pedal board in my left hand and my amp in my right. It was strange being able to carry half of my rig in one trip. The only technical aspect I didn't like was the top vent. I was so worried that my lead singer was going to set a drink on it. I have a case ordered for it so it's really not a huge deal.

When you play this rig live you start to really appreciate it. It has a warm tone and cuts through the mix. I really was impressed with the low end. I should note that I do use inears(shure e5's). It's strange because what I hear in my inears is what the bass cab sounds like. But my inears cannot make my pant legs flap and reproduce the low end as well, so they really compliment each other very well. I also enjoyed being able to compete with my guitarist's rig!

Congrats on the new rig! I too have become a G-K fan, 400rb 2-10 combo with a 15" SBX cab on the bottom. Loud as hell, I can only imagine how loud the 1001 must be. My SVT-CL is getting neglected. I have fallen inlove with the clarity and how instant the attack is on the G-K. Now, if only the wife will let me spring for a new ax!